USCT Pensioners: Rejection, Resilience, and Redemption

After the Civil War, Black veterans and their families fought a completely different battle; however, this one was a true logomachy, a war of words. From pleading with Army officials that they were who they said they were to widows who wouldn’t quit, these pension records tell the stories of resilience in the face of institutionalized discrimination and racism.

"USCT Pensioners: Rejection, Resilience, and Redemption" features the work of the students in ENC 4415/5935 Rhetoric and the Digital Humanities, but that was only the beginning of the collaboration among several groups. The Lincolnville Museum and Cultural Center identified St. Augustine soldiers of the USCT regiments for students to study. The UNF Carpenter Library Special Collections provided the pension records for students to research. The research librarians at the St. Augustine Historical Society made themselves available for student questions. The archivists at Flagler College created space in the Resilience Omeka site for these students to make their work public.

The students of ENC 4415/5935 Rhetoric and the Digital Humanities, Spring 2021 presented virtual posters at the online conference, “Resilience in the USCT Pension Records” in the spring of 2021.

In 2023, the LISC and Kristopher Smith began investigating abandoned cemeteries in Northeast Florida where USCT soldiers have been buried. These pension records are being utilized to apply for headstones for these soldiers, and the work of the UNF DHI has begun to assist the LISC in rehabilitating abandoned USCT gravesites, bringing these soldiers and their descendants the redemption they have so deserved. 

If you would like to donate to this important project, please contact Dr. James Beasley, Director, UNF Digital Humanities Institute, at James.Beasley@unf.edu

Project Director

Dr. James Beasley is an associate professor at the University of North Florida, where he teaches courses in rhetorical history, theory, and research.  His work has been published in College Composition and Communication, Rhetoric Review, JGE: The Journal of General Education, Enculturation, and Textshop Experiments. His current work-in-progress is an edited collection of digital humanities work within the state of Florida. Digital State will take as its focus how the fragmented narratives of Florida are collected and curated for social action within the field of digital humanities.

Community Partner

Kristopher Smith, LISC. Originally from Jacksonville, Kristopher Smith joined the LISC Jacksonville staff on April 20, 2020. In his role as Community Development Program Officer, Smith oversees LISC’s Jacksonville Urban Core Initiative and its efforts to advance economic growth in urban core neighborhoods. Kristopher brings nearly 20 years of experience in community engagement and development, grantmaking and capacity building to the organization.